I’ve got to decide contacts or glasses. How well do contacts work with traditional swim goggles or might a Seal Mask work better. On the bike any problems with them drying out?
I’ve been wearing contacts since the eighth grade. Can’t stand to wear my glasses for longer than a few minutes at a time now.
Training and racing with contacts is not a problem. I use regular swim goggles all the time and have no problems. Riding with a good pair of sunglasses, preferably something that wraps around some helps.
Lessons learned: If you wear disposible contacts, make sure you keep an extra set in you bike bag, also for races, make sure you have an extra set of goggles and contacts. At my sprint first race this season, my goggles broke just before the gun went off, I tried to swim without them and ended up lossing both contacts before I could go 75 yards. Result: DNF. I am pretty much blind without my contacts/glasses.
Now I always have extra contacts and goggles and I never really worry about it. I have been riding bikes since I can remember, I have lost maybe two contacts while riding.
BTW, tried a Seal Mask but it didn’t fit my face right so I just use traditional goggles without problems.
Good luck.
Tucker
Contacts will work fine with any type of goggles as long as the goggles stay on. You will lose your lenses within seconds if you swim w/o goggles and with your eyes open so since there is always a possibility of getting your goggles knocked off in the swim, the suggestion of having an extra pair (or at least your glasses) in your transition area is a good one.
If you’re going to have a problem with your contacts on the bike it more likely to be because something gets in your eye rather than your eyes drying out. Eye protection on the bike is a good idea.
I’ve raced with glasses, contacts, and finally, lasik. Contacts never posed a serious problem for me except one race in which my goggles, which were fine the night before, split. Half mile, head out of the water swim. Anyway, you know how much better contacts are than glasses during athletic endeavors? Lasik is that much better than contacts.
I’ve trained/raced in contacts for almost ten years. My soft disposables are great Accuvue IIs. Even mountain biking with dust they’ve been fine. My girlfriend wears hard lens, and they are a b#$%h. The tiniest particle will stop her in her tracks.
My only problem came on the downhill of Wildflower into the transition. With all the sweat and the wind, BOTH popped out. Going 35+ mph! Made finding my transition and the run quite challenging.
So…make sure you have good sunglasses that keep the wind out of your eyes!
Chris
i’ve worn soft contacts forever, and have never had a problem…i used to play water polo, swim, surf, squba, even open my eyes underwater, etc etc and they don’t come out. any kind of goggle/mask will be fine.
Soft lenses for 10 years here. Many water sports, never any major problems. The one thing I hate is waking up and putting on the glasses and forgetting to put in your contacts. I did Pacific Grove last year without my contacts. The guy I asked to escort me to the swim start was wondering if I would be able to see the bouys. LOL, I saw them when I got close to them 
Lots of good advice above. Soft contacts for me. No issues wearing contacts with my Kaimen goggles. No issues tri-biking either, but I always wear protective lenses of some sort (amber in low light, something dark when sunny).
FWIW, I didn’t have any contact issues even when riding the mountain bike this winter without eye protection down to -20F in our extremely dry Fairbanks climate. Had to ride without eye protection as anything I tried to wear would frost-over from exhaling.
I wear disposable lenses for all outdoor / leisure activities and glasses at work. (Since the disposables are roughly $1.- a day I don’t “waste” any on days when not necessary → swimming only, treadmill runs, trainer rides or days off.)
Regular goggles work for me, I have never used a seal mask. The goggles have to fit properly and every now and then I need to remember to blink.
I always have to wear some kind of eye protection on the bike so that I don’t lose them - and again, I need to remember to blink, especially when it is really windy and/or dry heat…
Always carry an extra pair in my transition bag - practice to put them in quickly and without a mirror so that it does not catch you off-guard when the situation arises because someone knocked off your goggles on the swim…
In addition, test the sun screen that you are using (if need be) before the race. Banana Boat sunscreen paired with sweat sets my eyes with contacts on fire. Bullfrog works for me.
Thanks everyone. I’ll give the soft or disposable contacts a go.